Shuniah – At around 4:30 pm EDT on Sunday, July 5, 2020, Shuniah Fire & Emergency Services (SFES) responded to a request for assistance for a 25-year-old male who had been injured at the MacKenzie River north of Highway 11/17.
Upon arrival, it was determined that the injured male was on the west side of the falls. Fire crews set up a staging area on the north side of the highway, just west of the MacKenzie River, and travelled north through the bush and found the patient approximately 500 metres north of the highway. It was learned that the group travelled there to go swimming.
Superior North EMS paramedics stabilized the patient while fire crews set up extrication equipment. The patient was extricated through the dense bush to a truck that was staged under the bridge, and then taken to the waiting ambulance by about 6:30 pm EDT.
Ten Shuniah firefighters in four units, along with Superior North EMS, responded to the call. The male was transported to the hospital, but his condition is unknown.
Shuniah Fire Rescue says, “With this incident, a similar incident in 2018, and a fatal swimming incident in the same area in 2013, SFES would like to remind the public of the dangers of travelling through, and swimming in this area, and the significant effort that responders go through to extricate someone to safety.”
